When you join Long Beach State Rowing you will be a member of the largest club program on campus. You will make friends with people from a wide range of backgrounds and with many varied interests and talents. The team structure, focus and support will help you get through the often-daunting transition from high school to college life.

When you join our team you become a member of one of the fastest-growing intercollegiate club rowing programs in the country. Rowers from CSULB have won national championships and some have even gone on to compete in the Olympics. Almost all of them learned to row at CSULB. The team is part of the CSULB Club Sports and Recreation division and competes successfully as a club against varsity and club programs across the country. We are a non-scholarship program competing against IRA men’s and NCAA women’s division I,II and III programs as well as other clubs. Our crews compete at the Western Intercollegiate Rowing Championships, American Collegiate Rowing Association National Championships, San Diego Crew Classic and other large regattas nationwide.

Your training will be split between the on-campus NCAA varsity strength training room in the Pyramid and water practices at the Long Beach Marine Stadium which is just a couple of miles, or a simple car-pool or bike-ride from campus. Our boathouse, which we share with a masters program and a high-school program, is home to our racing fleet of eights, fours and a number of pairs and sculling boats.

Prior Rowing Experience is Not Required

Prior experience is not necessary for you to try out for the team. While an athletic background is certainly helpful, almost all of the current team members did not row before college. Our students come from several backgrounds including swimming, water polo, track, cross country, volleyball, soccer, lacrosse, softball, gymnastics and tennis. A few of our students were not involved in athletics before college. While it can be an advantage to be tall in rowing, good com
petitive athletes come in all shapes and sizes. We certainly recruit for taller athletes but a love of competition is required to row at CSULB, so if you are a smaller athlete with a strong will and a ton of determination to succeed you will certainly thrive on our team.

Men, Women, Lightweights and Coxswains

The rowing team is made of two squads each for men and women: Novice and Varsity. You will be a novice rower. Novice athletes are first year rowers while varsity rowers have rowed at least one year in college. Each squad will also have crews for lightweight rowers, each member of which must race below the maximum allowed weight (men – 160 lbs, women – 130 lbs). Lightweight crews often contain a mixture of novice and varsity rowers.

In the boat, rowers face the opposite way from the direction the boat is moving. This means that they usually have no clue where they are going. Thankfully, most boats have a coxswain (cox) to steer the boat and to encourage the crew to row harder. If you think you may be too small to row, or perhaps you like to be around athletes, but don’t want to work out too hard, then you will enjoy becoming a cox on our team. Coxes typically weigh 125 lbs. or less (men’s team) and under 115 lbs (women’s team). Females often enjoy coxing men’s boats. Become a coxswain on our team and, in addition to academics, you’ll find that your college experience will include developing your confidence, motivational skills and leadership qualities.

What Should I Do Before I Join the Team?

It is not necessary to do any special training or rowing before trying out for the team. All the novice athletes will be starting out together so just arrive in good health and ready to learn. However if you do have the opportunity to attend a summer learn-to-row class at a local rowing club, then by all means do so – you will learn a lot and have a lot of fun on the water! Let us know if you’d like us to help you find a club in your area.

Download and complete the Rec Sports waiver form. Bring the completed form
with you when you come to the first practice or information meeting

Plan to attend one of our informational meetings held during the first two weeks of school. Look for
advertisements around campus and on the website http://www.beachcrew.org/. If you have any
questions contact the Women’s Coach or the Men’s Coach

Stay in shape over the summer!

Eligibility and Athletic Requirements

The rowing team is open to all academically-eligible, full time undergraduate students at CSULB. If you are a first year graduate student, you may be able to compete under the American Collegiate Rowing Association rules. Non-students can participate but are not eligible to compete. It is best if you join the team early in the fall semester of your freshman year, however academically eligible sophomores and upperclassmen are also welcome to join in the fall.

Funding and Scholarships Information

Rowing is self-funded and receives financial support from CSULB Club Sports and Recreation Department, CSULB Associated Students and our alumni organization. However, CSULB does not offer athletic scholarships for either men’s or women’s rowing.